Matthew 18
As much real as the Devil and demons are, so much real are angels. As Jesus teaches us today in the gospel, each soul is blessed with an angel at its creation. These angels are not only for Christians, for the child Jesus presented before his disciples was not likely baptized yet. And when he said, “Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven,” “these little ones” mean little children in general. In this sense, Jesus was teaching his disciples that God generously assigns guardian angels to all created souls. Then, it is not a surprise to see that, in one US survey in 2008, among American adults who don’t have a particular religion, one in five believes they have been protected by a guardian angel. And more than half of all adult Americans believe they have been helped by a guardian angel.
Guardian angels are not so much highlighted in the Bible, but they are ubiquitous. Angels attended on Jesus in the desert after his temptation by Satan. When he was struggling even to a point of sweating blood in the Garden of Olive, angels also succoured him. It was the angel who freed St Peter from prison. It is interesting to see that St Peter’s community members presumed his angel appeared to one of the women who had answered the door when real St Peter was delivered from prison. Apparently, for the first Christians, the apparition of angels was less unbelievable than a miraculous deliverance from jail.
The letter to the Hebrews teaches that guardian angels are sent to us to lead us to salvation. And St Thomas Aquinas teaches that these angels can act upon our senses and imaginations to help us to make good decisions.
Some of us might feel it is childish and superstitious to call upon guardian angels. But even Jesus was assisted by them. St Joseph received God’s messages from them to protect Jesus. St Peter was delivered from prison by the power of his angel. Then, let us not ignore them. Let us call upon their daily help. They are right next to us.
